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Businesses can benefit from graduates

Posted on 19 March 2004

Using graduate skills can significantly help businesses of any size and in any sector. This is the message that Professor Tony Robards OBE, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and HSBC Professor of Innovation at the University of York will deliver at a breakfast briefing at the National Railway Museum on 25 March.

Professor Robards will argue that both businesses and graduates in North Yorkshire miss opportunities to combine and prosper.

"That larger organisations seek to employ graduates for their skills and enthusiasm is a well known fact," he says. "What is less well known is that smaller businesses can also benefit from graduate talent. A range of new and existing schemes are available to North Yorkshire businesses to help make this happen."

"At the University of York we are particularly keen that local businesses should benefit from their proximity to some of the brightest students in the country. Our research also shows that many of those who study in the region would often like to work here too, but are not aware of the exciting possibilities of employment with North Yorkshire's smaller businesses."

To illustrate this commitment, Professor Robards will provide businesses with information on a number of initiatives that will allow them to access graduate talent, either by finding full time employees or using short-term work placements to achieve specific objectives.

In particular he will highlight the new Graduate Asset Programme (GAP) that is managed in North Yorkshire by the University of York and supported by the Learning and Skills Council and Yorkshire Forward. GAP will help small businesses to recruit a graduate and then provide up to half the cost of providing the recruit with relevant training. This could mean new skills in marketing, management, finance or specific technology that will directly benefit the business.

Also on show will be the Shell Technology Enterprise Programme (STEP), which has had tremendous success in providing local businesses with motivated students to deliver specific projects over the summer months. In 2002 York Environment student Danielle Holden won the UK award for her summer project which saved her host business £64,000 per year. This year a new scheme for high growth businesses, trading for less than three years, can provide a STEP student at a highly subsidised rate.

"I hope that we will be able to contact businesses who have never considered working with students or graduates before" says Professor Robards. "The potential of combining successful business with the talent within the region's Universities is enormous."

The breakfast briefing, 'Accessing Graduate Talent', is provided with the support of Science City York and will start at 8.00am on Thursday 25 March at the National Railway Museum, Leeman Road, York. Professor Robards will speak at 8.30am and the event will finish by 9.30am. The event is free to all North Yorkshire businesses, and breakfast will be provided.